WSOP Main Event Final Table Profiles
The Main Event of the 2012 World Series of Poker is down to its final 9 players. What do we know about them?
The 2012 World Series of Poker Main Event began with 6,598 participants, but now just 9 of them still have the opportunity to earn the $8.5 million first-place prize and the coveted Main Event bracelet.
For the last several days it appeared likely that we would see a female at the final table, but unfortunately that is not the case. Gaelle Baumann went out in 10th place, and Elisabeth Hille busted in 11th.
Although both women received $590,442 for their efforts, it is certainly disappointing to most poker fans that the final table includes all men.
Each of the remaining 9 players will earn at least $754,798 for having made it this far, but of course no one will be fully satisfied without a victory.
Of the 9, 8 are Americans and 1 is Hungarian. Their average age is 31.4 years old. They'll return to the Rio in Las Vegas on October 29th-30th to play down to a World Champion.
Who reached the final table?
Note: Lifetime tournament earnings as listed in these profiles do NOT include the $754,798 that each player has already earned from this Main Event.
| Jesse Sylvia | ||
| Age: 26 | Lifetime Tournament Earnings: $23,777 |  |
| From: West Tisbury, MA, USA | Current Chip Count: 43,875,000 | |
| Biography: Jesse Sylvia is a poker pro who currently lives in Las Vegas to grind live cash games. He rarely plays tournaments and has just 1 lifetime WSOP cash prior to reaching this final table.
Sylvia is very good friends with another member of this final table - Russell Thomas. The two players were roommates during the 2010 WSOP. |
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| Andras Koroknai | ||
| Age: 30 | Lifetime Tournament Earnings: $1,841,013 |  |
| From: Debrecen, Hungary | Current Chip Count: 29,375,000 | |
| Biography: Hungarian poker pro Andras Koroknai is one of the most experienced players at this final table. He already has a major title under his belt - he took down the 2010 WPT LA Poker Classic for over $1.7 million.
Many believe Koroknai is very fortunate to still be alive in this event as he was the beneficiary of a controversial ruling in a hand against Gaelle Baumann which perhaps should have eliminated him from the event. In a cruel twist of fate, he ended up eliminating her in 10th place a few days later. |
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| Greg Merson | ||
| Age: 24 | Lifetime Tournament Earnings: $1,319,704 |  |
| From: Laurel, MD, USA | Current Chip Count: 28,725,000 | |
| Biography: Greg Merson is the only player at the final table who won a WSOP bracelet this summer. He took down Event #57, a $10K 6-max No-Limit Hold'em event for $1.1 million.
Merson's final table actually puts him ahead of Phil Ivey on the WSOP Player of the Year leaderboard, although Ivey and others can still overtake him with strong performances at the WSOP-Europe. |
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| Russell Thomas | ||
| Age: 24 | Lifetime Tournament Earnings: $126,796 |  |
| From: Hartford, CT, USA | Current Chip Count: 24,800,000 | |
| Biography: Russell Thomas is an actuary from Connecticut who told the Las Vegas Sun that he's unlikely to return to his job full-time now that he's reached the Main Event final table.
He's good friends with chipleader Jesse Sylvia - the 2 were roommates for the 2010 WSOP. This is Thomas' second WSOP final table; he finished in 5th place in a $1,500 6-handed No-Limit Hold'em event in 2010. |
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| Steven Gee | ||
| Age: 56 | Lifetime Tournament Earnings: $498,422 |  |
| From: Sacramento, CA, USA | Current Chip Count: 16,860,000 | |
| Biography: Steven Gee is the oldest player at this final table at age 56. He's a cash game player who plays a limited tournament schedule, but in 2010 he managed to take home a WSOP bracelet for a $1,000 buy-in No-Limit Hold'em event. | ||
| Michael Esposito | ||
| Age: 43 | Lifetime Tournament Earnings: $172,806 |  |
| From: Seaford, NY, USA | Current Chip Count: 16,260,000 | |
| Biography: Michael Esposito is a commodity broker from New York who has played poker as a hobby for many years. This finish marks his 2nd WSOP Main Event cash and his 4th overall WSOP cash. | ||
| Robert Salaburu | ||
| Age: 27 | Lifetime Tournament Earnings: $42,411 |  |
| From: San Antonio, TX, USA | Current Chip Count: 15,155,000 | |
| Biography: Robert Salaburu is a poker pro who currently focuses on live play, but prior to Black Friday he played online for a living.
Known online as both "treadindank" and "treadinwater", Salaburu has far more online tournament experience than he does live. Because of that, we imagine he's probably fairly comfortable with a short stack. |
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| Jacob Balsiger | ||
| Age: 21 | Lifetime Tournament Earnings: $3,884 |  |
| From: Tempe, AZ, USA | Current Chip Count: 13,115,000 | |
| Biography: The youngest player at this year's final table is 21-year-old Jacob Balsiger, a student at Arizona State University.
Although he officially studies Political Science, he admits to spending far more of his time at school studying poker instead. |
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| Jeremy Ausmus | ||
| Age: 32 | Lifetime Tournament Earnings: $427,145 |  |
| From: Las Vegas, NV, USA | Current Chip Count: 9,805,000 | |
| Biography: Jeremy Ausmus is a poker pro who resides in Las Vegas and who had an impressive WSOP even before the Main Event with 8 previous cashes.
Ausmus is the shortest stack heading into October, but if he can gain some chips early he'll be one of the tougher players at the table - he has very solid tournament results playing online as "TheTaker". |
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By Matt Kaufman
